blood red, snow white
by ghostofnoodlewrap
Summary: Mel has come to the red king's city. Why? Who Knows? All that she says is that she wants to leave the past behind. But what haunts her? And is the past going to remain in the shadows? Book one of 'just a little bit lost'
1. prologue escape once more

_This is my first fanfic. Ever. It is a slight crossover, but what I'm crossing it with is not that well known, so I'm not saying what it is. Set post both series._

_Disclaimer: I own no characters. The Charlie Bone characters belong to Jenny NImmo. Mel belongs to Annie Dalton. Any other references belong to their respective authors._

**Prologue: Escape once more.**

The girl glanced once over her shoulder. The portal behind her had started to fade; it's bluish light no longer spilling over the sides of the alley. God, she hated scatter portals.

She looked down at her body. She wore no shoes; they had been lost long ago. Her long black skirt was ripped up one side to the waist. The ribbons on her corset were barely keeping it together. Her plain white blouse was torn, with hastily sewn stitches keeping it on her. On her left wrist was a crystal charm bracelet. Each charm represented someone from back home. Around her neck were what appeared to be, at a glance, dog tags.

She grimaced. Her outfit would have to change. Only the jewelry would remain. She raised a hand above her head and clicked her fingers. A second later she stood in jeans and a hoodie.

Next she took time to examine her surroundings. She was in a small ally way, between a bookstore and an old stone building. Above her the night sky showed many stars. Among the dirt was a small white envelope. She stooped to pick it up. The girl ran her fingers over the familiar wax seal before opening it.

_To the one meant to find this,_

_To protect your identity, you have been added as a pupil in bone academy. You will pose as an endowed, not a rarity around your location. Keep your head down until we find you again._

_Good luck_

With a wave of her hand the girl lit the letter. She dropped it back among the dirt and watched until it had burnt out.

Then she lifted her head and stepped out into the brave new world.

As she walked, she did not notice the thread thin chain spill out behind her. Before she had reached 10 meters, her foot was yanked back.

The girl sighed and knelt down, pulling a short dagger from her boot. She cut the chain with ease, but before her eyes it melted back together.

She sighed, and walked back to the wall, before leaning against it. It wounld be morning before she was found.

_Please reveiw. I need ideas for evil COTRK, as they have all left. Give me ideas ect. this may be updated quite fast for a week, then very slowly for the rest of the time. In all, thanks for reading._


	2. found, questioned and accepted

Chapter One: Found, Questioned and………… Accepted?

Morning light spilling through Emma's curtains woke her. She kept her eyes closed for a few minuets, listening to the birds, before grumbling herself fully awake. She had too much to do to let herself lye in bed all day.

Rising from the warmth of her bed, she yawned widely and opened the curtains, so that sunlight spilled into her attic bedroom. She pulled a pair of bunny slippers over her feet and a dressing gown over her body, and then trudged down the stairs to breakfast and Aunt Julia.

Emma engaged in small talk over the breakfast table while she poured orange juice and ate toast. She was only half awake and half listening.

"… If it doesn't trouble you, can you help at the bookstore today?''

"Oh… I can in the morning," pondered Emma, "but I'm seeing the other's at the pet's café this afternoon. It is the last day of holidays, you know, still I'd love to help." Emma tagged on the end.

Her aunt nodded the affirmative, thus ending the conversation. Emma took it as a sign to leave the table and go and get ready for the day.

***==== A few hours later====***

"I'm closing up the bookstore for lunch now Emma." Aunt Julia called from the kitchen. "Before we eat, can you be an angel and take out some rubbish for me?'

"Sure…" Emma replied, a little uncertain of what her job entailed, "just as long as no leftover spaghetti sauce is mentioned"

Her aunt chuckled, but answered by pointing to some empty cardboard boxes. Emma picked a few up and trailed outside with them, so she could dump them in the recycling, in the small alley that lay between the bookstore and the cathedral.

I didn't notice the girl in the ally at first. It was only when she had started to recycle the boxes she saw her.

She sat, quiet to the point where you could not hear her breath, unblinking emerald eyes staring up at me. We stared for what seemed like eternity before I broke the silence.

"W-why are you here?" I managed to stammer.

"I'm chained to this recycling bin," The girl said, in a tone that seemed to be bright and cheerful, yet heavy dark at the same time. "You wouldn't happen to be able to free me now would you? I've been out here all night."

The girl held out a thin silver chain to me. I saw I could break it with my bear hands. How could it have kept her prisoner all night? I took the chain in my hands and pulled.

It broke easily.

Yet as it dropped onto the floor, the ends met and it melded back together. Mystery girl sighed. The same must have happened when she tried to free herself.

"I can't just leave you out here." I said. "My aunt's making lunch, she can make more for you too, we can eat out here." I added. "But before I go, who are you?"

"Well," the girl said, with a small smile. "If I can get unchained, I start at Bone Academy tomorrow, and" she paused, tilting her head to the side, "I've had many names over the years, but for now, call me Mel."


	3. phone calls and meeting the gang

Disclaimer: I don't own any COTRK characters; they belong to Jenny Nimmo. I don't own Mel; she belongs to Annie Dalton. I don't own any references to any show, novel, picture or fellow fan fiction that I may make; they belong to their respective authors.

Chapter 2: phone calls and meeting the gang

I watched as the girl called Emma came back into view. She held a plate with sandwiches on one hand and some cartons of juice in the other. She stopped in front of me and plopped herself onto the ground, placing lunch between us.

"You said you were going to Bone Academy tomorrow," she said with a hint of uncertainty, "That's the same school as me."

I nodded, thinking of the chances that the person who finds me is also going to my school. Sometimes the universe so sets you up.

"I'll be in drama," I told her. "Though I don't expect to be very good at it, I'm really only going as I'm endowed."

I watched as Emma's eyes widened, hoping I hadn't said the wrong thing. Then her face lit up with glee, her mouth opened and a torrent of information poured out.

"I'm endowed to! I can fly, but only if I turn into bird first, so I guess I'm a kind of shape-shifter. Only a few of us have powers and we try to use them for good, or at least my friends do. We're all meeting up this afternoon at the pet's café…." She trailed off. "But I can't go and leave you here on your own," she gasped, "I can phone them and get them the come here instead. Then you can meet them all. What a brilliant idea."

With that she pulled a sparkly pink mobile out of her pocket. I had a feeling I was going to sit through many phone conversations with high girly squeals in them.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

***====Many phone conversations with high girly squeals in them later====***

Around the corner I heard the doorbell ring. Emma got to her feet to answer it. I lifted my head to see a large group of people come around the side of the building. I counted ten in total: Emma, who was hung off the arm of a tall blond boy, who stood next to an even taller African, who was talking with a lanky boy with floppy brown hair and a boy with dark curly hair. On Emma's other side was a girl with vibrant colours in her hair, who was holding conversation with two dark haired boys. Standing at the back was a petite Asian girl and a boy with wet looking hair and storm grey eyes.

When they saw me slouched against the bin, my chain glistening in the morning sunlight, all conversations ended. I smiled up at them as Emma moved to the front. She took a seat by my feet. Apparently this was their signal to do the same. I looked back to Emma to begin the conversation. She took a deep breath.

"Mel, I'd like you to meet; Tancred, he's a weather monger, and also my boyfriend." (Tall blond boy) "Lysander, he can call upon his spiritual ancestors." (Tall African boy) "Gabriel, he can feel emotions off clothing," (This was tall, lanky, floppy brown hair.) "And Fidelio, unendowed, but a musical genius." (Curly top) Emma paused for breath. "Olivia, an illusionist." (Vibrant hair) "Charlie, a picture traveler." (Dark hair no.1) " And Ben, doesn't go to Bone's, unendowed." (Dark hair no.2) "Standing behind everyone else is Naren, she can send shadow messages, she's only starting at Bone's tomorrow." (The little Asian girl) "And Dagbert, who can errrrr…. Drown people." (Wet hair) A/NDagbert turned good in the end

"Emma," someone nervously said from the crowd seated around me, I think it was Charlie, "err…. Aren't you normally the quiet one? And also, where's Bi-"

The frantic ringing of a doorbell and relentless pounding on the door cut of Charlie. As one our group called to him and he skidded around the corner to us.

This boy had to toke the biscuit for his oddness. He was much smaller and thinner than any of the others. His hair was snow white and his skin the colour of cream. Ruby red eyes were hidden behind the thick lenses of his glasses. An albino.

"Sorry I'm late," he said between gasps, "I got caught up talking to some animals in the park."

"Billy," Emma said, turning to me, "as you may have guessed, can talk to animals."

"Emma told us you were endowed," Fidelio said from the crowd of heads in front of me, "but not how or what had happened to you."

Oh dear, question time. I couldn't tell them who I really was. I didn't trust them enough yet. And my 'endowment'? How could I begin to explain? Or where I had come from? My family? And why I was chained to a recycling bin?

"Hmm… my endowment. It's tricky to explain. I can 'mess about with' the way particles are arranged. It lets me do lots of stuff, like turning wood into diamonds. But one of the main things it does, well, I'm empathic." I paused, thinking how I could explain it. "I can influence feelings, but feelings influence me. If you put me in a room of angry people, I can calm them down, but the longer I'm in there, the angrier I get."

There was a slight reaction around the group. Again I thought of how to explain my background. The best way to weave a believable lie is to stick to the truth. So all I had to do was make my past as believable as possible. Sigh.

" I got a letter from Bone's last week. My dad didn't want me to go. Said he needed me 'cause mum died when I was a baby. I ran away. He had never treated me right." I shed a little of my glamour then, so that the cuts and bruises of the few months could be seen. " We didn't live in the city, but it was easy to get a bus here. I don't remember what happened last night. Why I'm chained here. I-I don't know what someone might have done to me last night." I let my voice falter and break over the last sentence.

There were a few moments of stunned silence. I felt bad lying to them, but I couldn't tell them the truth yet. I looked at the faces around me, waiting for one to speak.

"Maybe we should try to free you now." Said Olivia, breaking the silence.

I held the chain out to her and she snapped it with ease. Before I had the chance to move the chain was whole once more. Everyone tried to break it, but the result was the same each time. It seemed it would be around my ankle for eternity.

"If we can't get the chain off your ankle, perhaps it will come of the bin." A boy said from the back.

With that, every child stood up. Boy did they know the meaning of teamwork. The bin was lifted and I was able to pull the chain from under it. Before it could do anymore harm, I coiled it around my ankle. It melted together to form a simple silver anklet. I was free.


	4. Another New Start

_Disclaimer: I do not own COTRK; Jenny Nimmo owns them. I do not own Mel (or her friends); they belong to Annie Dalton. I do not own T.R.A.P. or the Dougen; they belong to the co-producers of princess Ai. I do not own any references I might make to anything else; they belong to their respective owners._

Another New Start

***====Flashback====***

Feet pounding down corridors. Clangs as chains are released. Frantic shouting. Not much time left now. The creak as the unoiled hinges of my cage door are opened. Relief as the many chains that bound me are released.

I lift my head and stumble my way into the chaos beyond. The drugs used to silence us are starting to wear off. I follow the stream of Dougen into the centre of the complex. Among the crowd I can pick out the pink hair of the shape shifter. She was the only one in with them, the only that was kept. I wonder why? But there is no time to think. We must hurry.

Soon the crowd is no more. Swept by others into portals. Only four of us remain, but the last portal has turned scatter. Once through, we will be separated. I look at the anxious faces of my three closest friends, before nodding them on.

One by one, they duck into the light of the closing portal. I take one last look at T.R.A.P, my prison of the last few months, then, I too turn to the portal that will take me to my new life.

***====End of Flashback====***

Mel and Liv huddled under the little protection the bus stop gave them. Large droplets of September rain attacked them from above. The purple drama bus parted what seemed to be an endless flow of water. The two girls ran for its more adequate cover, jumping inside as soon as they could to find shelter from the wet.

They sat together on the bus, playing noughts and crosses on the steamed up windows. The new girl found it was nicer to have a friend on her first day, than to arrive clueless at the gates of her new school like last time she transferred. I what seemed like minutes, they were departing the bus to stand outside newly polished, but still dull gates.

Within seconds the girls were lost in the sea of colour cloaks. Just a head of wild black curls and a mop of orange, blue and white streaked hair. The school term had begun.

***-====Monday evening====***

The king's room. Homework time. Bone academy has many strange traditions. The endowed doing their homework in here is one of them. And why is it called homework anyway? We do it in school. One by one we file in. There are only two new faces among the crowd, First years. New like me.

A member of teaching staff is seated at the round table. Once we are all seated at the table, he looks up and clears his throat to give some kind of speech.

" Now I am well aware that many of you have been here before, but we have three new pupils with us today. For the benefit of all of us, can you please stand up and introduce yourselves."

I rolled my eyes, another 'hi I'm new!' speech. I push me chair back, meaning to rise, but I'm not quick enough to start the torturous introduction.

"I'm Will, and I can read anything in any human language!" Cried out an energetic boy who was stick thin, with huge eyes. "It means I rock at French!"

" I'm Tina, and my drawings hold keys for the future." Said the dullest girl I've ever met. She and Will were polar opposites.

" I'm Mel, and it's easier to show you my endowment than to explain it."

I took a pencil from the table. With my fingers, I pushed out the lead. Then I crushed what remained and shoved in into my fist. I waved my other hand over my fist and took a few moments to applied pressure. Finally I opened my fist to reveal a perfect diamond nestled in the palm of my hand.

***====Sometime during the following week, perhaps on a Thursday, as I like Thursdays====****

I could hear footsteps padding down the corridor, two, maybe three pairs. The paces were accompanied by low murmuring voices. I thought I heard my name dropped into the conversation. Huh, never miss a chance to 'find out' what others think of you. I sensed I had a little time before the group rounded the corner.

I turned to the wall behind me and placed my hands on the cold brickwork. Straining my mind, I thought back to what my friend Lola had told me about this method. 'Give it for the monocles in your hand to become friends with the molecules in the wall.'

Slowly, I watched, as my hands seemed to sink into the bricks. They were, no thicker than air to me…. O.k. maybe a bit thicker, like too thin icing. Once entirely encased, I drew my eyes to a crack, so I could witness the scene about to take place. Three people rounded the corner, Olivia, Lysander and Emma. I was not hurt that they were talking behind my back. Humans have impulses, and bitchiness is one of them. I, for one, would know that by now.

"-It's just that now the other endowed are gone, there has to be someone to take their place." Emma was in full flow, but she abruptly stopped.

So they thought I was evil (sorry EBIL). Insert freakish laugh Never saw that coming.

"There does seem an aura of … oddness around her." Liv put in hesitantly, as if there was something more she was too nervous to say. But then could be wrong. I mean, Liv, nervous?

Lysander nodded.

"My ancestors are trying to tell me about her, but I'm not sure what they mean," his voice dropped a tone. "They say she is more aligned to their world than ours. I cannot begin to understand what they mean."

"You know how our endowments get stronger over time," Liv waited for the other two to nod. "I think, sometime, mine became stronger; I can now sense illusions. It's just up till now there's been no other illusions to sense." She paused, as if unsure what to say next. "I can sense an illusion around Mel, but I can't see through it. It's paper thin, but so strong. If I could break it, we'd know the truth.

The 'little discussion' about me ended there. The trio carried on in silence. I wasn't surprised Liv had sensed the glamour I was wearing. An illusionist will spot an illusion, I suppose. Once they were out of sight, I melted out of the wall. I guess rumors will fly, but they are rarely accurate: with mine, well, it would be hard to get further from the truth.

_A/N: Mel's 'friends' (and her foes) may be entering this in chapters soon to come. However, thats not so simple. As mentioned in afore chapter, going through a portal, they were split up. There will be a story for each of them, each in a different book, cartoon, anime ect. give me some advice on where ypu want each character to be. Thanks for reading this far. Please review._


	5. Slipping

_Disclaimer: I own nothing. All characters and plot basis belong to Jenny NImmo, Annie Dalton or another respective author. I repeat, it is not mine, so don't sue me._

Slipping

***====A Time, Perhaps Approaching Half-Term-====***

A fresh October evening slipped away as the children of the red king sluggishly ploughed through the piles of homework. The children in the room worked in silence. Though the atmosphere had become relatively more peaceful since many of the endowed left last term, the quiet was more a produce of the iron fist with which their new teacher ruled them. No one knew his name, and he shirked from any questions. The only time he spoke was when he had to bring order to the room.

That night, it was one of the more restless times in the king's room. The room was tense and rebellion bubbled in the hearts of even the most docile people. Homework was the last thing on many peoples' minds at that moment in time.

"Sir?" Came the first call. "Would you mind telling us who you are? You see, you never got round to telling us even your name." Tancred asked, his voice polite, but there was a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Silence when you're working!" Came the gruff reply.

"But Sir," Tancred continued to poke, " I've finished."

"Well there are others in the room who haven't!" The teacher aimed dagger like eyes at Tancred, but was ignored. "Now shut up or I'll give you detention.

"Actually, Sir," came a hesitant reply from Billy, "no one in this room is working."

The dagger eyes were turned on Billy now. All the faces in the room turned see what sort of confrontation would take place. Tancred had always been one to stand up to teachers, and had earnt many detentions for it. Billy, however, never went out of the way to get into trouble. He was always shy around staff, always wanted to please them. Faces waited impatiently to see the argument take its path.

"Personally, I think it's a waste of time sitting here." Mel drew all the attention to herself. Well, she was a drama student. "First, none of us have any work left to do, and second, homework finished five minutes ago. Thus, I rest my case."

All eyes rose to the clock, which had ticked on, giving out that 'life will continue' vibe that clocks do, throughout the entire confrontation. After a moment or two, mystery-misery-guts-teacher gave a huff and stalked from the room. After a heart's beat pause, the children burst into cheers.

There were many whoops, chortles, whistles, winks, applauses and even a little dance that expressed the children's delight. That mood was spoiled though, when someone slapped Mel on the back.

No one herd the sharp intake of breath she drew in, or the moan that came from her parted lips. All saw her double over in pain, saw the clear teardrops roll down her cheeks. The cheering was silenced as if it were on a tape that had been paused.

Then, in a manner that shocked those who had grown up along side magic, Mel disappeared. All that remained where she had been, beside the empty air, was a feather.

Silence rang around the room.

Emma stepped forwards and stooped to pick the feather up. She eyed it critically. It was about two hand spans long, and three finger widths wide. It was snow white in colour, with a silver tint to its edges. Its edges were hard, a wing feather, though a thin one. It was like no bird feather that Emma had ever seen.

* * *

I listened to the voices congratulating me over my victory with grouchy-face-sour-milk. After the time I'd spent alone or running, it was a new sensation to have so many people around me. I almost felt human again. Almost.

All that changed when someone slapped me on the back. That wasn't in the rules. Not within the limits for them. But then I couldn't think. The pain was too much. Pain washing away all else.

Dimly, I noticed all noises all noises apart from me had stopped. But I didn't care. All that mattered was getting out of there. So, without another though, I apparated myself away.

I contemplated my situation. I would have a lot of explaining to do in the morning. I had got out of it tonight by pretending to be asleep when the others came back. I knew I shouldn't try to put it off. I known from the moment I'd met them it was going to have to one day tell them the truth of my past. Yet still I tried to put it off. Leave an unsavory tale for another day.

I sat up in the small bed I had in the cramped dormitory. I couldn't put it off any longer. I looked around to see if any of the other girls were awake. They were all dead to the world. Good.

Silently, I slipped out if my bed. Not a sound was made as I crept to the bathroom door. I pushed the door open slowly, and closed it with the same care. Then I padded to one of the cubicles, taking time to lock it behind me. Once inside, I sat on the toilet seat, closed my eyes and concentrated. Slowly, particles moved themselves into new arrangements. When I opened my eyes, I was staring at my reflection in a full-length mirror that had appeared on the cubicle's door.

Sighing, I rose slowly. Then, in one swift movement, I tugged the thin nightdress I wore over and off my head. I looked at the 'healthy-glamour-wearing' me.

My skin had a natural tan to it. Not much; I would still be considered white, and not enough to make you think I had any heritage outside Great Briton. My legs were thin and well shaped. My hips were not too wide, but I wasn't a scrawny wretch. A flat stomach. I had B, almost C-cup breasts. Slender shoulders and neck. My face was heart shaped, with full red lips, a straight nose and large emerald eyes framed in thick black lashes with arched eyebrows. There was a sprinkling of freckles across my nose. My skin was clear, the same light olive tone that spread across the rest of my body. My cheeks had a pinker hue to them. Glossy black curls hung down to the small of my back.

I knew I was beautiful. I knew I had a body that other girls would kill for. I knew why boys' eyes trailed after me when I left the room, why they turned to bumbling idiots trying to impress me when I was around.

But that wasn't the real me.

I let the glamour I wore slip, relishing the feel as cords of magic slid off my body. The tapestry threads unraveled to reveal the true picture beneath.

My skin was paler now. Red whip marks crossed it from my legs to my back. Burns, welts, sores, scabs and bruises were not uncommon either. My skin was snow white from blood loss, something I had not solved; even after many weeks. Yet what ran through my veins and arteries was blood red. Blood red, yet snow white.

Aside from the red cuts, my legs were the same shape, but something was wrong with the left one. It was translucent; an even paler white, if that was possible. My foot was black and the blood vessels that led away from it, seen through the paltry of my leg, were black too. My hips were thinner. The bones protruded far more than what was healthy. My stomach curled in. My breasts were a fraction smaller, but it was hard to tell. They were covered in many bruises, some of which could have been hand shaped. On my right arm, lay a deep puncture wound, surrounded by many ugly bruises. My collarbone was more pronounced, as were my cheekbones. My lips were bruised and my eyes full of unshed tears. There was no flush to my cheeks. My curls hung limper and matter. On the left side of my face, a butterfly had been engraved into my skin. Even though it was months after it was done, the wound was still open.

The most noticeable difference, however, were the pair of twisted and broken wings that protruded from my back. The thin bones that supported them had been snapped. Not a single bone remained whole. Many fathers were tinted pink with blood or brownish grey with dirt. In the light, fishhooks glinted. They were too far back for me to reach and pull out. I was on so many painkillers; I couldn't feel any of my wounds. My heart throbbed out one question; Would I ever be able to fly again?

* * *

After silently wallowing in misery for many minutes, grieving for the friends and homes I was forced to leave behind, some long ago, others so close I can recall their faces, I rewove my glamour. Tugging my nightdress back on, I realized how tired I was. Not from lack of sleep, but the weariness of despair in my heart and the fatigue of constantly using my powers. As I crept back into the room full of sleeping sounds made by the girls, someone hiding in the shadows caught my hand.

"Don't get so downhearted Mel," a husky voice whispered from the shadows, " I'm sure your knight in shining amour is coming to rescue you soon."

Slowly I turned to face the voice that called to me from the shadows. Straining my eyes, I could make out the outline of a body. I matched the silhouette to the voice. Why was he here? He shouldn't be able to find me this quickly. His powers must be growing.

I looked down at the crystal charm bracelet that represented my friends from back home. A single stone had started to glow. I lifted my eyes back to the shadows and parted my lips. Then, as loudly as I could without waking the other girls, or my voice breaking, I called his name.

" Rueben?"

A/N: As I said in the last author's note, Mel's friends and enemies are starting to appear. Rueben has been in L.J Smiths 'Night World'. I still need two places for Lola and Brice, so please review and tell me where you want them to be, as they will be in the story as of next chapter. I am now going to start Rueben's story, so please check it out!


	6. Spilt

_A/N: This is now a second priority story, as I've started writing a new story and need to get it to a certain point before I can go much further with this one. On another note, all the stories in 'Just a little bit lost now' have a category to go into._

_Disclaimer: I own nothing. COTRK belong to Jenny Nimmo. Mel and her friends belong to Annie Dalton. Cake belongs to the bakers, so I don't have any._

* * *

***====Last chapter====***

"Don't get so downhearted Mel," a husky voice whispered from the shadows, " I'm sure your knight in shining amour is coming to rescue you soon."

Slowly I turned to face the voice that called to me from the shadows. Straining my eyes, I could make out the outline of a body. I matched the silhouette to the voice. Why was he here? He shouldn't be able to find me this quickly. His powers must be growing.

I looked down at the crystal charm bracelet that represented my friends from back home. A single stone had started to glow. I lifted my eyes back to the shadows and parted my lips. Then, as loudly as I could without waking the other girls, or my voice breaking, I called his name.

" Rueben?"

* * *

Spilt

It couldn't be him. I was dreaming. Or else my mind was playing tricks on me. I drew my palms together and created a spark of light between them. The spark grew in size until I had a small glowing ball. I sent it forth, to light the hollow in which he was hiding.

Light spilled onto every aspect of his perfect face. The yellow in my light gave his natural tan a less natural colour. It played with the gold in his eyes. He looked tired, a little beat up, but compare him to me without my glamour and he looked almost too perfect.

"Are Lola and Brice here?" I asked quietly

"Not yet," he told me, "they'll be here by tomorrow though." I nodded at his answer, not trusting my voice.

I couldn't help but shed a tear as I stepped into his embrace. Arms that I had longed for for weeks were finally wrapped around me. Relief coursed through me. He's here now; everything's going to be all right, I thought, as I pressed my lips to his.

He stiffened in surprise, but soon relaxed. I don't think he expected me to act upon an impulse. Feeling the familiar touch of his lips, body and mind seemed to fill a gap in my soul. Soon we had both lost ourselves in our kisses.

As heat built between us, kisses deepened, tongues touched and hands ran through hair, I found myself pulling him to the door of the girls dormitory. As we stepped beneath the doorframe, particles shifted and we became invisible to human eyes. Between us, we created the illusion of me sleeping. Then, sitting on the relative softness of my bed, we continued to be distracted by each other.

My hands slid up his back, under his shirt, gently stroking the delicate skin between his shoulder blades, a spot sensitive to all our kind. He shivered at my touch. I took it as sign to carry on. I tugged his top over his head and pulled him down on top of me.

Rueben moaned into my mouth. His hands, which trailed over my skin, leaving burning paths in their wake, became bolder, seeking new flesh. In a flash, he had pulled off my top, which had changed from a nightdress as we dematerialized. His lips left mine and carved a searing trail down my neck to my collarbone. That was when I lost control of my emotions. Waves of love, lust and pleasure overtook my mind, wiping away all my thoughts. I knew I was safe in his embrace, where I eventually fell asleep, still lost in his arms.

Rueben woke me again about an hour before the other girls would rise. We had to make it look natural, that I'd been asleep all night, so that they wouldn't try to rouse an illusion. Liv would notice that anyway. He told me he had to leave. That he'd be meeting Lola and Brice soon. Before he left, he mentioned that the three of them were enrolled to be coming to Bone's after half time. If we stayed here that long. With the four of us there might be enough power to move on, see somewhere different. Somewhere calmer.

Once he had gone, I settled into a half-sleep. It was too early now for me to sleep deeply. To early for me to be haunted by my persistent nightmares. I crept dozily into a slumber, knowing my peace would not last long.

* * *

The general activity of the rest of the dorm preparing for the day ahead woke Mel. She tumbled from her bed and started to dress.

It was a Friday, and the weekend euphoria could be felt in the room. In fact it was more than that. The next week would be half term and the entire school was relishing a break from work. As Mel, Liv, Emma and the other girls from the dorm walked to breakfast, the sun shone invitingly on the gardens outside. There would be a restless atmosphere for the rest of the day.

Lessons were relaxed. Most contained revision to prepare for exams that most children were preparing to forget about. It was in English, the last lesson of the day that problems hit for Mel.

The teacher, having seen how restless the children were, decided to let them write poetry. They had to choose an event that had changed their lives and create a poem to do with it. Mel laughed internally. There were several things that had changed her life, heck! She could think of a dozen events that had not only changed her existence, but the course of human history!

But she couldn't write about those. They were part of her other life. The one she had left behind. The one that was catching up on her. As she thought, her hand started to move on its own accord.

It was writing. Her own cursive script scrawled across the paper. A poem was being written before her own eyes.

She looked down at the hand she hadn't been able to stop. Then it moved, allowing her to read the script below.

Sacrifice

It took a lot to get here,

Though none on my own choice.

All of us have suffered pain.

And death.

The truth of heav'n,

Hidden behind clouds.

Veiled from sight,

By those above us.

It takes at lot to learn.

Never a hero on your own.

Teamwork or humiliation.

Among the fields of despair.

Together so strong.

Alone so fragile.

It takes a lot to whisper

Comfort in the night.

When you fear for those you had to leave behind.

So many faces you will never see again.

It takes so little to realize.

The good guys don't always win.

It was vague, Mel thought. Vague enough to keep without spilling her secrets all at once. And anyway, wasn't she trying to give hints now, to show what she really was? The teacher didn't know a thing about her and there wasn't time left to come up with another poem. It would do for now.

As Mel worried about what to do, the school bell started to ring. Its peals bought her back to reality. Though clichéd, Mel realized she had been saved by the bell. She gathered her things together, and made her way to the girl's dorms, where she had left the trunk that she kept all her possessions in. All pupils were to go home for half-term. Mel knew she couldn't go 'home', but she'd find someplace to spend the week, like she had every other weekend.

She walked into the long, thin room, which was lined with small beds and dropped her work on her bed. The room, for once, was light and breezy. Many of the girls had already left, but Mel saw her friends Emma and Liv still packing their things.

It was then a small gust of wind picked up the papers that were strewn across Mel's bed. Most didn't get that far, but were picked up by Mal and Emma. A single sheet had been blown as far as Liv.

"Oh no!' Emma cried in an overly dramatic way, "There are English papers everywhere!" She pretended to swoon. " You were doing poetry today, weren't you?"

"Yeah" Mel nodded, while flicking through the paper to see what was still missing. "Write from an experience that changed your life. Come to think of it, that's the only paper that's missing it. Have you got it Liv?"

I turned to see Liv scanning the poem. I could swear that her eyes widened each time she read another line. When she finished, she looked up at me.

"Who are you Mel?" She voiced quietly, with a slight shake of the head. "You never tell us anything. Every time we try, you change the subject. We don't know anything about you."

I couldn't keep lying to them. I knew I had to tell, and soon. But I could only do that when they were all together. I would not live a lie for much longer.

"Not now." I told them, scrunching up my eyes. "Tomorrow, 10.30, The Pet's Café .Get the message around. I'll tell everyone everything together."

Then I took the poem from Liv, gathered my things and walked from the dorm without looking back.

***==== The pet's café, 10.30, Saturday ====***

When Mel walked into the pet's café, a small grey cat padding in behind her, everybody was waiting for her. Even Billy. She took her seat, the only one left around the café's biggest table. The cat jumped into her lap, curled into a ball with its tail over its nose and fell asleep. A crowd of expectant faces stared at her, and she glared back them. About a minute later, someone spoke.

"Well?" Charlie began, in an almost insolent way. "What have you got to tell us?"

"You know," Mel started, turning her gaze solely onto Charlie. "I really don't plan on making the Newspapers today. And anyway," she added in a purely casual tone, "there are some people I want you to meet, and" she said, looking at how they were seated, "I don't think they would fit around this table."

She scooped the cat into her arms. It opened one bleary eye. Mel pushed back her chair and stood up.

"If you care to follow me, then you will learn what you wish to know." She took one more look around the table seeing the cup placed in front of her chair. "Oh, and for the record, I don't really like orange juice,"

With that, girl and cat turned and walked from the café, not checking to see if she was being followed by the hoards of endowed children whom she had come to see. She turned onto the road outside the café, heading for the square in the centre of the city. Once there, she turned into the ally by Ingledew's bookstore, the place she had been found.

She stopped there, turning to face the crowd. She raised a perfect arched eyebrow.

"This," she said, gesturing to the ally around her, "is abnormality."

"Mel…" Lysander said cautiously, "This is an empty and perfectly normal ally."

Mel's small grey cat jumped out of her arms then. It padded in front of them, then, turned to stare them in their faces. A glow spread across the cat's fur. It could have been the sunlight, but it was an overcast day. Next, a wind blew the cat's fur up until it stood on end. The glow continued to grow brighter, until all you could see was a yellow light, in a vague cat-like shape. The light continued to grow, the shape becoming unrecognizable. When it had reached its peak, it was too bright to look at, and around the size of a small desk. As the light dimmed, it changed shape, becoming a pillar. A dark shape could be seen within. The light dimmed further, sinking into the shape in the centre, which was clearly a humanoid being. When the process was complete a girl, around the same age as the others stood there.

"…And that is where you would be wrong." The girl directed to Lysander.

She had features that were strikingly similar the Mel's, but it was clear they were not twins. The same glossy black curls hung down her back. She was the same height, and had the same figure. Her skin was darker. You could see she clearly had some African heritage. Her cheekbones were high, like a Native American's. She wore a simple t-shirt and jeans. The chain of a necklace could be seen around her neck. A crystal charm bracelet curled around her wrist, completing the image.

"This ally has a lot of out of world stuff in it." Said a boy that had appeared out of thin air next to the new girl.

He was tall, clearly the oldest person the ally. He had a mixture of blond and brown spikes crowning his head. His eyes were, from the first glance, flat black, but if you looked closer, there was a spark of amusement in them. His skin was pale milky white. He too, wore plain clothes, all black, that would not draw attention in a crowd.

"You never know what you might find if you look closely." A second boy said quietly, after melting out of a wall.

This boy was all honey tones. Tan skin stretched over a thin frame. His hair was a mess of honey, toffee and caramel baby dreadlocks. He had full lips for a boy, and his eyes were a too clear, too bright gold.

"These," Mel gestured to the new people in the ally," are my teammates, Lola, Brice and Rueben." She said, pointing to each one in turn. Introducing them in the order they arrived. "I suppose its time to tell our story now. But one thing first." She held up a finger and turned to her 'teammates'. " Glamours off people."

Her order was carried out immediately. All four bodies gather a glow. That glow slipped off, giving a new look to each child.

Lola, Rueben and Brice now had a sort of inner glow. Their eyes were a pure, clear colour, though Rueben's hadn't changed to achieve that. Lola's clothes had changed into a backless white dress, made simply of one piece of material. This was to accommodate for the white wings that burst from her back. The boys also had wings, but they had ripped through the backs of their shirts.

Mel had also changed, it was clear she was the same sort of creature, but there was something was wrong with her. She was much thinner. Her pallor was greyer. White skin with red cuts criss-crossed her flesh. She was gaunt and drawn. A butterfly was carved into one of her cheeks. The white dress she now wore, one identical to Lola's, was soiled with blood and dirt. Her great white wings hung down her back in tatters. She looked at the children surrounding her, with ancient eyes that spoke many tales.

"We can tell you our tale, but it won't be sugar and flowers." Mel began. "It will tell you our back ground and how and why we are here"

The winged creatures joined hands then. Another yellow light started to glow, this time between them and the children of the Red King. When it was the size of a small table, they stopped. The light died out, and a picture of a girl appeared on the screen.

" That's Melanie Beeby. It's the day after her thirteenth birthday." Mel was speaking, but the words drifted into middle distance. "That was the human me."

The picture changed. It now moved. It zoomed from the mug shot, to show Mel crossing a wide, but empty road. When she was around halfway across, a car sped around the corner. She had time to turn her head and see the driver, a boy barley older then her, before she was run down. The screen went black, before a new scene played out.

Mel looked no different than when she had started to cross the road. She stood still, among a sea of children rushing through a pair of tall gates. Then she saw someone who could have been Lola. Her expression changed. Without a word, she followed Lola through the gates.

"That was the first day of my new existence. I saw Lola, and went through those gates. It turned out she was my soulsister. We'd been born almost 100 years apart. In 2106, she 'got in the way of a stray bullet'. It turned out I'd been made for a life like the one I was about experience. It was later in the day when I met Rueben."

The picture changed to a courtyard. Mel and Lola sat on a bench, talking to Rueben.

"Rueben's a pureblood. He never was human. He's the modal pureblood student, good at everything, apart from earth studies, which he flunks in." her lips curved into a smile. " I met a lot of people in those few days." Faces flitted over the screen, before freezing onto one boy's. "This is Orlando. Another pureblood. A prodigy of sorts. Only a senior trainee, but he led missions to earth. Whenever he saw me, I was either acting like a ditz, or breaking a major law. He led my first mission to earth. Remember his face."

The picture changed again, showing London in the Second World War. Then there was a shot of Mel talking to a young child.

"In short, I broke the rules and left my team to help a girl. That was when I met Brice, who was, at this point, one of the fallen." On the screen, Brice walked into the ruined room. "I only survived that meeting through luck. Something about me changed him. He disappeared, and I was almost expelled. My second mission was to Tudor England. It was more of unofficial snoop around, as no agent were allowed into the area. Highlights included: Rueben being ground to a pulp by Brice, meeting Shakespeare and not a lot else."

"Our third mission was a bit… different." Lola spoke for the first time. "It started halfway through my birthday beach part. We ended up in thirteenth century France, still in beach gear, before finding some timetravellers and learning the truth behind Brice."

The picture now showed many out-of-world buildings. Brice, who had been standing quietly at the back, spoke his own story.

"I was born in 2194, to the De Winter clan. My family has been causing trouble throughout history, but I didn't let them turn me over to the 'dark side', and I didn't want it to happen to my little brother either. He was three when I died. I'd been chosen to become an agent, after 15 short years on earth. I wasn't happy. The agency said they'd help my brother, but they never did anything. I sold my soul to the 'dark side' in order to be able to look after him. I was an errands boy. When I did well I could see him.

They kept me away for quite a while at one point. My brother, Domonic, was a genius. While I was away, they placed the blueprints for a timemachine near him. He built it, of course. I helped this lot," he said, gesturing to the rest of the group, " Stop him from giving it to the rest of the family. For that, the 'dark side' expelled me. I few months later, I was adopted by this lot."

"Time passed, and we took various missions to earth." Mel started again. "Then I started to have the dreams. Someone was calling to me, telling me I was the only one who could save our world. The four of us found a new purpose; to wake the humans up and release the magic that lay dormant inside them. We did what we could for them. It was natural. What we were chosen to do. It was the way nature had made it. That all changed when we mat N.A.T.S.

Her race hadn't been seen back home since before time started. She was time. And she wanted help. She had helped us when we were working, and wanted help in return. Because of our good nature, we agreed.

She told us about the turning points. The apocalypses. We'd just finished ours. Yours is done too." She added when she saw she faces of the Red King's children, "we became agents for her. We traveled to new places, met new people, did our work. Then we found out. If you can travel, so can your enemies. They caught up with us. Life seems simple, but sometimes isn't. We each have a personal demon. When a demon rises, one of us has to fall. Remember Orlando, he swapped for Brice." Mel's face held so much pain now that she could not carry on. Lola took over from telling their yarn.

"Mel has been a spy inside an illegal substance factory and research lab for several months. She has to take breaks to survive with her sanity, so, to help her with this we break her out. We run through several dimensions, to lay a false trail, before she is caught again. This time it didn't go to plan." Lola's words trailed off and Rueben took up the speech.

"Normally we all end up using a normal portal, to get to one place. If you leave a portal for long, it turns scatter, meaning that every person who goes through it will end up in a different place. That's what happened to us. The amount of time it took to find each other was quick. With luck, our demons won't find us anytime soon."

The boy had clearly finished the long speech. His eyes cast around the people surrounding him, waiting for someone to speak. There were several heartbeats of silence before any noise was made. Then it was not from the mouth of any person who had been there before, or one who had been expected to speak.

"Don't be so sure of us." A girl's voice called from the shadows, with a malicious laugh. "Remember: As your powers grow, so do ours. There is nothing you can do but let the past catch up with you."


	7. Tension

_A/N: sorry I haven't updated in a while. Teacher's do not understand the words 'light workload'. This is a short chapter._

_Disclaimer: I own nothing. Everything belongs to Jenny Nimmo or Annie Dalton or its respective owner._

**Tension**

"Balance. There is balance in everything. A picture won't work if you only use light colours, there must be shadows to even it out. You can try to create the perfect universe, but darkness will find its way in." The voice speaking was feminine, with a faux kind of sadness in her voice. Through the shadows she hid in, you could see the vague outline of her body, and the glint of her eyes. "Your kind tried to create the perfect world, didn't you?" A hand with scarlet nails emerged from the darkness, and quivering, pointed at the winged creatures before her. "But darkness, like I, shall always find its way in." Her hand retreated back into the shadows.

Slow clapping broke the silence that followed her short speech.

"You always were the melodramatic one, Maia." Mel dryly put in. "I have to say, I do believe your acting skills have improved since last time we met." She then turned to the children of the Red King, who had watched the last few minutes wondering what exactly was going on. " I believe we have already established that Lola is not my twin. I would like to state, on behalf of the eternal battle between good and evil, dark and light, that neither is Maia. She is, in fact, my dark opposite that just happens to look like me. Thank you." She took a bow.

"… And she called me the melodramatic one…" Maia muttered.

"So what miraculous events bring you to us here today, Maia?" The sarcasm in Lola's voice was heavy.

"Oh, just the one where we hacking into your files and found Mel's location, which enables us to kidnap her again and cart her back to T.R.A.P. Obviously, I can't do that alone, so I bought this," She waved a small white flag at them. " And came to inform you that if the four of you Halo polishers were thinking of attending Bone's after the holiday, then you won't be the only celestial beings in town." She stopped and took a huge breath, then raised a hand to wave "See you soon, but it's only bye for now."

A wisp of smoke remained where seconds ago the girl had stood. The stink of sulpher filled the air. Through the haze, something floated to the ground. Only Rueben made a move forward to pick whatever it was up. As he drew back, he held the object up. Light bounced off two wing feathers. One was white, much like the one Emma had not long ago. She realized now whose wing it must of come from. The second was red, and strikingly similar. They were crossed over each other, and tied together by a piece of faded pink ribbon.

"Well this certainly isn't good."

***====An Hour later, in a condemned house being used as 'base' for Mel and her friends====***

"…We can't sit waiting to be attacked!

"We've already come to that decision, Rueben." It was clear from Mel's flat tone she's had to say that several times already.

"Then why are we lounging around like sitting ducks? We should have gone after them already!"

"Because we don't know where they are, or how much help they have on hand." Lola rolled her eyes at Mel, then turned back to Rueben. " I think your stay with the desperate people has addled your brain."

Mel shot a death stare at the girl; this wasn't the time to mess around. She pretended not to notice. Reuben sighed out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding, before turning his back on them, folding his legs into the lotus position and starting to meditate.

"It would have been madness going after them." Brice said calmly, seeming unfazed by Rueben's behavior. "We can't rise to their baiting. If we use the help we've got, we might make it through. As long as they don't find you alone again."

"We can't tell Charlie's lot any more about us! N.A.T.S is already mad with us." Mel's frantic shouting caused Rueben to crack open an eye. "They're mortals. Mortals will never understand us! A mortal cannot fight a celestial's battle. We're alone, that's all there is to it."

"There's one thing I can say," Lola said, "This is going to be a very interesting term."


	8. Playing by the rules

_A/N: The last few days of holiday are upon me, as I go back later than a lot of people. No idea how I'll get into school with all this snow though…_

_Disclaimer: I own nothing. COTRK belongs to Jenny Nimmo. Mel, Reuben, Brice, Lola, Maia, Rufio, Leela and Orlando belong to Annie Dalton. Other things I may use belong to their respective owners.

* * *

_

Playing by the rules 

_Mel's P.O.V_

**West side of city clr of dark activity. Quick scan outside city boundaries b4 returning 2 base.**

**East area clr. Recent activity found, dark, but not deamonotic. Returning 2 base.**

**Overall city scan complete. Minimal deamonotic activity recorded. Little dark energy in the area. Returning 2 base.**

**Any1 thought how 2 explain this 2 Charlie? The sooner the endowed understand the danger; the sooner they can take measures against it.**

I flipped through the text messages that were suddenly flooding my phone. Both the heavy and the light scans showed what we had already expected: the demons had not made a base near the city. However, they were serious about enrolling in Bone academy. This would cause problems.

I flipped back to menu and started compose a text of my own, before sending it to all of the team.

**Charlie will b discussed base. Get there now! **

I sighed. This could be a long day.

***====The time it takes for grass to grow later====***

I sat. Already having to sit, that was a bad sign. This was the easy part. If I had to sit now, what would I have to do later? Lie down?

"We need to discuss some sort defense system. Remember, this is for everybody, not just us." I always hated this part. Thinking of something, then finding out how long it is until it fails.

"Stay in groups. Demons pick people off one by one." Lola had given the classic answer. And the only answer for humans.

"How can we kid ourselves? It the only thing humans can do. So much of this is going to be up to the four of us. One of you," I said, waving a hand at them as I stood up to leave the room. "Get Charlie's lot here in under an hour. We have even more serious explaining to do."

I stood and turned to the door. One hour. Sixty minutes. Three thousand six hundred seconds. Such a short space of time to compose myself before it all come rushing out.

Slow.

Soft.

Time is of the essence. Small touches of calm time, among the frantic, enough to keep sane, enough to regain calm.

***====Under the apple tree in Liv's garden====***

_Emma's P.O.V_

Liv and I were stretched out beneath the apple tree in her garden. The sun was beaming down with all its might, as if were trying to make up for all the times it had been hidden behind grey clouds. A slight wind rustled the leaves of the tree above us and somewhere a bird, I'm sure it was a thrush, was singing out its heart. Liv was trying to get me out of the shadows, to no avail, to get me to sunbath. I was reluctant to move. Being fair skinned, I knew that the sun would easily burn me.

"Five minutes in the sun. Five short, measly minutes aren't going to burn you. You're ghost pale," She said, lifting one of my arms, before I snatched it away. "At least get some colour into that skin."

"Liv, the only colour the sun makes me go is red or pink. If you make me go in that sun for five minutes, than I'll be peeling in five days time." It was true; some days I wasn't sure who was more of an albino, Billy or I! But Liv was not taking no for an answer.

"That's rubbish!" She cried. "You're just pasty because you stay indoors, stuck reading or drawing all day. You just need a little sunlight on your skin, it'll bring out some colour."

With that, she proceeded to try and drag me from under the tree. I clung to the grass, long enough that it should have been mown a few weeks ago, and tried to dig my heels into the soil.

"Come now, my dear," Liv said in her best 'Old Woman's,' voice, "You don't want to make me tickle you."

I squeezed my eyes shut, expecting an onslaught of Liv's fingers. Instead, I got a prickling felling at the back of my neck. I was- we were being watched.

Liv seemed to have felt it too, I realized as I opened my eyes. She was standing over me; hands inches away from my stomach, stock-still. I used Liv to pull myself to a standing position, then, turned to face behind me, where I was sure the person was.

Nothing. No one there. I could have sworn I heard a giggle, from above me. I raised my head.

She was sat on one of the tree's boughs, feet swinging under it, hands clutching it, so she didn't fall as leant forwards, towards us. Barefoot, white dress so pure in the dappled light, wings invisible, she blinked back at us. Black curls, long and loose behind her, green eyes glinting like emeralds, skin too dark to be Melanie.

Lola.

"You must come now," she said, her voice almost songlike, "We are waiting for you."

***====Meanwhile, at base====***

_Mel's P.O.V_

I hated giving orders to my friends, those that should be my equals. I hated acting tough and cold to them- though sometimes I couldn't tell if it were an act or not. I didn't want to stalk out of the door, without once looking back, but I knew I couldn't face what was behind me.

Blindly, I stumbled along the deserted corridor in front of me. My hands found a door, and I fumbled with knob to get it open. The room inside was barren. Paint was peeling off the walls; the floorboards were dusty beneath my feet. In the centre of the room was a bed frame, with an old, sagging mattress. I made my way to it.

The springs groaned as they took my weight. I pressed my face into the musky material. That was when I heard the footsteps.

Someone had just entered the room. The hinges of the door squeaked a little as they protested about being shut. There was a click as the door closed. A rustle of clothing as the person turned. Then there was silence, but I could feel their hot gaze running over my back. Still I did not look up.

The footsteps started again, padding softly, like a cat, only just loud enough for me to hear, to quiet for a human to hear or make. They paused when they reached the bed, level with me. I felt the springs compress, heard them groan as they took the weight of a second person.

Then there were hands. Fingertips delicately brushing my hair off my shoulders, exposing my neck. The contact was enough to tell me who this was.

Rueben- through his fingers I could feel the gold reaches of his mind.

There was no need to speak. Our minds were connected. Not quite one, but defiantly not two separate entities.

His fingers were warm against my skin, slowly and lightly running down from my neck, over the thin cotton of my tank top, until they reached my lower back. Then he started to apply pressure, only a little, rubbing small circles over my back, my neck, my shoulders, working out knots from muscle I hadn't noticed were tense.

I tried to relax more, but survival instinct refused to let my sense dull when I was, potentially, in some sort of danger.

"We can't get through to any of N.A.T.S.' bases here." Both his hands had come down to my hips, touching the bare skin between my jeans and where my top had ridden up, fingertips just brushing under it, asking for full skin-to-skin contact. "There are 50% less dimensions touching this one than average, and the wards around it are quite strong. You were lucky to end up in such a secluded spot from that scatter portal." Yeah, sometimes the universe so sets you up.

"Lucky, my ass!" I snorted at him.

There was silence from him for a few seconds, before he spoke again.

"Nah, luck can't be that cute." I could picture his grin.

"Flirt." I murmured quietly, only just loud enough for him to hear.

There was movement at that. He slid forward from his position kneeling over me, to one where he was half on top of me, half alongside me. I could feel his breath tickling my neck.

"But you know you love it." As he whispered in my ear, he moved a hand that had been casually draped across my waist and down my hips. He gave me a firm squeeze, as if to prove his point.

I raised my eyebrows at that, then remember he couldn't exactly see that. He chuckled. I realized I had forgotten about our mind link. He growled playfully into my ear and began to nibble round its outside. Hands pulled my tank top over my head, leaving my top half in only a bra. His mouth started to rain kisses upon my neck and back. I flipped myself over, underneath him and finally his lips met mine.

And when you're like we are, all barriers sort of, just melt. The bond we share, touchable, but not breakable. The words rang through our heads -if we still had those- only not as words, as a burst of thought- some pure form of energy that ran along the edge of creation. And we were just two more souls locked together in an embrace of kisses and touches.

***====Meanwhile, at The Heights====***

Strong sunlight didn't go well with Brice. Seriously, the kid would fit right in on the set of a cheap horror movie. Walking around in a dark library- that was him, but strolling round The Heights in the summer- strenghth sun- not his scene at all, you could tell he just didn't belong.

Still, he had a job to do. And he wasn't foolish enough to go back to Mel empty handed; that had happened before and was a mistake he hoped never to repeat again. Yet, one hour to round up all the endowed children on The Heights, tough call. Luckily for him, all of them, minus Liv and Em, were gathered in Gabriel's house, for reasons that were yet to be explained- he wondered if they ever would be. As he neared the residence, he could hear the children's laughter; ironic how simple shining light could turn teens into toddlers.

As Brice walked behind the Silk residence, he could see a fine spray of water making rainbows in the air above the garden. They were having a water fight. He sat in silence on the garden fence, waiting for them to notice him.

It took all of five minutes for them to notice he was there. An incident with a stray water gun, he was ashamed to admit; there was now a long wet stripe down his black t-shirt. He stared at the offending streak and the material steamed. His eyes lifted back to the children. They seemed, to him, to shift out of his gaze, as if he would fry them too.

"Mel is waiting for you now. She wants everyone back at base in 15 minutes. Stay or follow, it's your choice, but remember, if you're not there, it's my ass that ends up shoved into the deepest pit in hell." That was all he said before he turned on his heel and left, hoping there was a crowd of endowed children following him.

Long sentences weren't Brice's thing either, but relaying orders, stalking away, being a general freak and occasionally disappearing into thin air like a vampire in a bad movie; that was the essence of Brice.

* * *

_A/N: Ok.... Really weird thing happened. This document decided to be 'difficult'. When I uploaded, it had no bolding, centre text, blank lines ect. I left it overnight and it sorted itself out. No idea how....._


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